


Blow Me Away

by TheChuckles



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Alexandria Safe-Zone, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, I Just work here, I don't know, Maybe Romance Later On, Other, Telekinesis, The Hilltop (Walking Dead), The Sanctuary, This is pretty weird, all out war, saviors, the kingdom - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-20
Updated: 2016-10-22
Packaged: 2018-07-16 03:53:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 14,619
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7250911
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheChuckles/pseuds/TheChuckles
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jake Macklin isn't normal.<br/>For over two years, he has survived the apocalypse with one tool--his mind. For reasons unexplained, Jake has the power of telekinesis, the power to move objects with his mind. The power has been slowly consuming him, until one day he winds up thrown into the conflict with Alexandria and the Saviors. Now at Rick's disposal, how will Jake handle life with other people, when nobody knows of his secret ability but Rick?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I can move Stuff....Thaaangs

**Author's Note:**

> I have to admit, this is gonna get really freaking weird. But, i'm excited to see how it all turns out! I don't even know at this point :)  
> ~TheChuckles

** Jake  **

  
"Don't move a fucking muscle, kid."

  
Jake Macklin froze dead in his tracks. The husky voice of a man behind him wouldn't have been enough to stop him, but the sound of his rifle was. _What an inconvenience_.

  
"I'm turning around, don't shoot." Jake sounded bored, because he was. He always ended up on top of these situations. _Always_.

  
"Put all've your weapons on the ground and put your hands up. Don't get any funny ideas, kid. I'm not the only one here."

  
Jake scanned the forest, seeing nothing. Then he scanned the forest using his telekinesis. He felt four more bodies hidden behind trees. The temptation to pull at them was strong, but he didn't know their intentions quite yet.

  
"Nice and easy, that's it." The man that was giving commands was short and fat. His jean jacket did little to cover up his bulging beer belly. A wild black beard sprouted from his chin. His snarly black hair tangled in with his beard hairs as it descended past his shoulders.

  
"I don't have any weapons." Jake said. "You can even search me if you want, but i'm telling the truth."

  
"I've heard that one before, kid. You stay still, my trigger finger is itching today." The man laughed.

  
Jake felt a disturbance coming from the trees. One of the other men stepped out and roughly patted Jake down. Like he said, Jake didn't carry weapons anymore. It was useless to him. _Why burden yourself with a gun or knife when you can simply take from another?_

  
"He's clear."

  
"Wow, you were tellin' the truth." The fat man smiled a yellow smile. "Now, let's get down to business, shall we?" He lowered his gun. "Do you know who I am, son?"

  
"Not a fucking clue." Jake sighed. "Should I?"

  
"I don't know, should you? You see, i'm out huntin for a certain dickhead from this quant little town called Alexandria. Heard of it?"

  
_A town?_

  
"No, I haven't."

  
The man creeped closer. "Funny thing is, in this world now, I can't tell when someone is telling the truth or lying to me anymore. You said you had no weapons, and that was the truth. But how do I know you're telling the truth now? You see my problem?"

  
"Listen, dude, i'm not hurting anything out here. I'm just wandering around, taking in the lovely dead forest. Do you mind if I just walk away?"

  
"Can't let that happen, champ. I've already told you too much. Would you mind coming with me?" The command was disguised as a question.

  
"I'll pass."

  
"I'm afraid I must insist." The greasy man lifted his gun.

  
Except he couldn't.

  
His entire body was frozen in place. His eyes went wild, the only sign that he was struggling to break Jake's control. The other man, the one who searched him, was too dumb to realize what was about to happen. He took a nice fly to the top of the nearest tree and found his stomach impaled with a thick branch.

  
The other three men tried to flee, but Jake snatched them all and dragged them to the center without moving a muscle. Each one pulled out their pistol and aimed it at their own heads.

  
"It's been nice knowing you guys, really." Jake smiled as he forced them to kill themselves.

  
He unfroze the fat man, but not for long. He ripped the knife from his belt to examine it. The blade was sharp and shiny enough for Jake to check his hair in it. He always liked how, with his power, he could force his brown hair to stay in place, swept to one side along his forehead. He still couldn't change his eye color though. He _hated_ his blue eyes.

 He admired the curved tip before plunging it into the man's head as he ran away. He ripped it back, this time with the man's rifle.

  
Jake shot each man a couple times in the body. Although he didn't have to do this, he liked to make his messes look normal. He couldn't explain the man in the tree, but _hey, he had to have some fun in the apocalypse, right?_

  
Another presence.

  
Jake turned around to see a middle aged man holding a gun to his temple. The end was as cold as the look on this man's face. His salt and pepper beard and ragged black hair did little to soften his appearance.

  
He spoke in a southern drawl. "What the fuck are you?"

  
First, Jake locked the man's finger so it wouldn't pull the trigger on his pistol. Then, he decided he would have a conversation with this man. Something about him didn't seem so bad. Even if he was holding a gun to his head.

  
"I think you mean 'who are you', sir. I'm Jake. What's your name?"

  
"I saw what you did to those Saviors. They killed themselves without hesitation, and then the knife... _how_ is that possible? I must be dreaming or something, or you aren't human."

  
"I can assure you i'm human. Now, about that other business, it's really a long story. A story I don't know the beginning of and don't have the time to tell to a stranger whose name I don't even know."

  
The man hesitated. "I'm Rick Grimes."

  
"Nice to meet you, Rick." Jake froze Rick in place. He stepped aside, watching as Rick's eyes followed him with frantic worry. "I'm not going to kill you, Rick. You seem like a nice guy. This is just for my own safety." Jake tore Rick's pistol out of his hand, along with the machete hanging at his waist. He made sure to take the handheld radio as well.

  
"There, that's better." He unfroze Rick.

  
"How...how can you do that?" Rick grabbed his chest to reassure he was still alive.

  
"I honestly don't know how, man, that's the sick part of it. One day, it just fucking happened. And then the apocalypse happened, so I mean, I don't know?"

  
Rick tilted his head as he examined the 17 year old boy before him. He was thrown off on how to deal with him. It was obvious there was no way he could kill Jake in one on one combat. _It was terrifying to him_ , Jake could tell.

  
"Do you have any idea how dangerous you are, Jake?"

  
"Yeah, that's kind of why i've tried to stay away from people this whole time."

  
"I...i'm sorry, i'm just trying to comprehend this. So, you have like telekinesis or what?"

  
"Yeah, telekinesis. I can move stuff with my mind. I can kill the dead by throwing them against walls. I can choke people without even looking at them. You saw how I carved up those men without hardly moving." A thought occurred to Jake. "Hold on, you knew them, didn't you?"

  
"They're part of a larger group called the Saviors, ran by this man called Negan. They...they killed one of my friends and have enslaved my community. We give them half of everything every couple of weeks. You just killed five of them, probably out on the hunt for..."

  
"For whom, Rick?"

  
"Me."

  
"Why?"

  
Rick half-smiled. "Long story."

  
"Well listen, Rick. If you need help taking out these guys, i'm down for it. It sounds like you're having a hard time with these Saviors or whatever. What do you say?"

  
Rick was silent.

  
"Oh, right, the telekinesis. I get that can be hard to wrap your head around."

  
"I'm going to be completely honest with you, Jake. I can't trust you. You could have killed me ten times by now, and still can. I'm not just going to lead you back to my home, where my children sleep. Where my family sleep. I just need to pretend like I never met you."

  
Jake was tempted to freeze Rick, force him to take him back to his home, but something stopped him. Maybe he could talk to him without forcing his hand? _It's worth a try._

  
"I can control it. I don't have this bloodlust to kill people, I hope you believe me. I can be trusted. Those people tried to kill me, you would have tried to kill me, but you know why I haven't killed you? Because I can sense that you are a good person. A father, like you said. I had a family once, I know what it's like to lose them. I wouldn't ever do that to someone like you."

  
"Even with you saying that, I still can't take you back. I hope you understand." Rick rubbed his head as if he were trying to clear it. He turned to walk away, but Jake wasn't going to freeze him. He had to prove himself to Rick.

  
"You need help with these Saviors, Rick. Imagine what I could do to these people under your command."

  
Rick paused.

  
"I could be a super soldier for you. I can do more than killing. I can move bullets in midair, cause them to miss their target. I can jam guns, start cars, lift people into the air, make people follow you. All you have to do is ask."

  
Rick turned around. "I can't control you. This could all be a trap, and I would be falling for it hook, line, and sinker."

  
"You're losing this war your in. I can change the tide...for _either_ side."

  
Rick was definitely freaked out by the whole situation. He stared at Jake long and hard. It was almost if he were trying to shoot him down with laser beams.

  
"Fine, but I swear to God if you do anything to harm anybody, I will find a way to kill you. You better believe that."

  
"Understood."

  
"And nobody is to know about... _you_. Whatever you call it, telekinesis. That stays under wraps, got it?"

  
Jake smiled. "Understood."

  
Rick sighed. "Fuck it, let's go home."

  
As they were walking, Jake handed Rick back his weapons. After a moments' thought, he handed him the knife and rifle he stole from the Savior.

  
"I don't need them anyway."

  
"I believe you."

  
After a long trek through the forest, the two men came upon a road. Rick led them down the beaten asphalt for half an hour. A gate became visible over the wreckage of a neighborhood. Armed guards stood on the wall on either side.

  
"Here's the story: I was coming home and ran upon you in the woods. Those Saviors were harassing you, and I helped you kill them. Understood?"

  
"Crystal clear." 

Next Time: Jake becomes acquainted with his surroundings, while Rick has serious regrets about letting him into Alexandria. :) Hope you like the story so far! 

~TheChuckles


	2. The Gilded Cage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Michonne and Jake come back from scavenging to find Alexandria occupied by the enemy.

Jake found it increasingly hard _not_ to use his powers around the citizens of the Alexandria Safe-Zone.   
  
It wasn't even the not force choking anybody--simple things that Jake didn't even think of were really messing with him. Instead of fixing his untied shoe with his telekinesis, he had to actually bend down and tie it himself. At least when people were around.   
  
And, the less and less he used his power, the less bloodthirsty he became. The symptom first popped up once Jake started killing people with his mind. The more frequent Jake used the telekinesis, an insatiable itch formed somewhere deep in his brain. He liked to think of it as working out his magic muscle.   
  
He hadn't flexed his magic muscle in over four days.   
  
Michonne's voice startled him. "Jake?"   
  
"Oh shit, sorry." He snapped out of his thoughts, focusing his stare on Michonne. She was standing in front of him, arm extended so she could hold onto the handle of her katana strapped on her back.   
  
She was a warrior, as far as he could tell. Jake only knew little about Alexandria in the four days of his residence. He knew Rick was in charge, and he knew some of the primary members of his group. There was Michonne, and Daryl the archer, then Abraham and Sasha. And there was that one old woman that had baked him cookies...Carol?   
  
He also knew that those few were all extremely dangerous. He spent some time talking to Olivia, the woman in charge of supplies and guns. She told him about the former leader, a woman named Deanna. She told him of what she'd seen Rick do, how he led the whole town against a horde of walkers.   
  
"Something on your mind, sport?" She gave him a quizzical glare, but with a warm smile. It was confusing.   
  
Jake bounced on his heels. "No, just daydreaming."  
  
"Don't be doing any of that out here, or you'll be food for the dead." Michonne turned around and continued on her way. Jake followed. Rick had sent them on a very specific mission--to find cars.   
  
"We need to build a perimeter around the walls, especially the gate," Rick had said that morning. "We need to make it hard for the Saviors to get at us. You'll go with Michonne to find out where some cars are at. Later on, the two of us will move them into place."   
  
"You mean me." Jake had said with a smile.   
  
"Yeah, you."   
  
Now, Michonne and him were on the hunt.   
  
After a solid hour of hiking, they came across a town. Since Michonne was leading, Jake took the opportunity to levitate along to save energy. Michonne would look back at random intervals when she stopped hearing his footfalls. Anything to flex his magic muscle.   
  
The area was clear, Jake could sense, but he still let Michonne sweep the area. The town turned out to be just a small gathering of buildings, barren of all signs of life. Weeds and random plants were starting to reclaim the concrete sidewalks running parallel to the road. Vines were crawling up the sides of crumbling buildings.   
  
"Shit." Michonne swore.   
  
"We'll find more somewhere else." Jake said. He took a drink of water.   
  
"No, not that. It's just that...there were cars here last month. At least four of them, but now they're all gone."   
  
"Could it be Negan's men?" Jake handed Michonne the water bottle. It was refreshing, but warm.   
  
"Maybe. If it is, they're planning something."   
  
"We'll have to tell Rick then." The two of them began the journey back to the Safe-Zone.   
  
Suddenly, the air was filled with the sound of gunshots.   
  
"That's coming from home!" Michonne said, picking up her pace. She ripped her katana from it's sheath. Jake ran behind her, holding a pistol in his hands. If something was really going down, he would have no need for it. Just thinking of the ways he could butcher more Saviors left his mouth watering. The little muscle in his brain was on fire.   
  
"Fuck it." Jake whispered, jumping into the trees. He emerged above the canopy and sped ahead of Michonne. He made certain not to let her see him flying, because, well, flying wasn't normal. It didn't occur to him that Michonne was probably searching for him on the ground. He found a spot to land when he registered several bodies moving toward Michonne.   
  
_Walkers._   
  
Jake dropped down 20 yards away from the nearest one. He decided he would let his power run rampant. Two rocks dislodged from the mud and sandwiched the walker's head between. Its head exploded in a black and red geyser of gore. Two more were approaching him from behind. Jake sent each rock flying into their stomachs. Once they was lodged inside, he dragged them up. Both walkers were ripped apart by the time the rocks emerged from their heads.   
  
Another walker stumbled into Jake's way. He felt Michonne running toward him, so he dropped one rock and brought the other into his hands. He drove the rock down into the walker's forehead, cracking it like an egg.   
  
Michonne appeared a moment later, blood covering her katana and her face.   
  
"Are you alright?" Jake asked, discreetly moving the two walkers he demolished into the bushes.   
  
Michonne growled. "It's not my blood. Let's go."  
  
Ten minutes later, Alexandria was in sight. The gate was closed, but Jake sensed a large truck inside the walls. They crept into the roadway, where they were met with bullets spraying the asphalt.   
  
"Where the fuck do you think you're going?" A voice yelled. A Savior stood on the roof of a burned house outside the wall. Jake subtly snapped his knee and broke his neck, but made it appear as if he slipped on the steep tiles.   
  
"Fucking clutz." Michonne commented.   
  
Before they even reached the gate, Oliva came running to let them in. There were fresh tears flowing down her face.   
  
"That prick is here. Negan."   
  
"Already? He was just here last week." Olivia opened the gate. Jake and Michonne rushed in. Jake could now see Negan's truck, but it wasn't a truck at all. It was a moving van, currently being loaded full of supplies. Rick, Daryl, and Sasha stood off to the side and watched as the Saviors took medicine, food, and weapons.   
  
"He's already back?" Michonne was in an uproar. Rick looked at her with silent fury. "I can't do anything about this. We just have to go out and scavenge more."   
  
"There's nothing left to scavenge! Jake and I found nothing." With that, Michonne stormed off down the road. Rick sighed.   
  
"Well, Rick, boyo..." A man in a leather jacket appeared from inside one of the houses. "This has been a fucking blast, but it's getting a little late in the day, wouldn't you say? It's time to hit the road with all of this absolutely goddamn amazing shit you've given me! Thanks man."   
  
_That must be Negan._   
  
"Dwight, bring me Lucille."   
  
A man appeared out of the moving van wielding a baseball bat covered in barbed wire. He turned to give Negan the weapon, revealing the severely burned side of his face. The skin was angry red, and his hair was receding on that side of his head. Jake assumed the weapon's name was Lucille.   
  
"Good shit." Negan said. "Let's roll out! Catch ya later, Rick!"   
  
Negan, along with at least ten Saviors, piled into the moving van and began to back up. The small crowd that had formed around them dissipated. Rick watched them leave with a face that could melt steel. It made Jake mad that someone could just walk into his new home, terrorize these people, steal supplies, and simply leave. _If only I had the power to do something about it...  
_  
"Rick!" Jake called. He rushed toward the only man who knew about his power. Daryl and Sasha walked away. "Rick, get your people and get guns, now."  
  
The look on Rick's face changed from hate to fear. "What are you doing?"   
  
"I'm gonna kill that van. There's only ten of them there, and that's their only cover. We can overrun them, but only right now!"   
  
"Fucking shit!" Rick swore, but he complied. He ran towards Olivia's house. Jake waited until the moving van was almost at the gate before killing the engine. He closed the gate itself so the van wouldn't roll outside the walls.   
  
For a moment, all was silent.   
  
Then, one of the Saviors tried to open the back door. Jake could sense it. He slammed the door down on the random man's neck, killing him instantly. The others inside didn't try to leave the safety of their van.   
  
Negan himself rolled down the passenger side window. "What the fucking fuck is the meaning of this bullshit? If one of you sabotaged this damn van, i'll fuck you with your own guts wrapped around Lucille!"   
  
At that moment, Rick's group moved in from either side. Jake spotted Daryl, Abraham, Carol, Michonne, Sasha, Rosita, Aaron, among others. They surrounded the van on three sides. Jake realized he was standing in the middle of the road all by himself. He took cover behind one of the houses close to the group, in case they needed further assistance.  
  
"This is really fucking funny Rick. Ha fucking ha!" Negan shouted, waving Lucile in his direction. He pulled out a pistol and aimed it at him. "You stop this bullshit right now or i'll fucking kill everyone of you!"   
  
Jake decided Negan was too dangerous with his weapons, so he yanked them out of his hands and sent them skidding toward Abraham. The red-headed war machine picked up Lucile with a satisfied smile. He tucked the pistol into his belt, but threw Lucile down the road.   
  
Rick caught my gaze. He looked at me, then nodded at Negan.   
  
Negan was pushed against his door until his body accidentally unlocked it. He tumbled out of the van, crashing on to the asphalt face first. Jake made sure to smash his face extra hard. When he looked up at Rick, he was on his knees with a broken nose. Jake opened the van's back door.   
  
"Listen here, pricks, I want all of you to step out of that van and drop your weapons!" Rick shouted. "Fail to comply and I kill Negan."   
  
One by one, each Savior stepped out, but none of them dropped their weapons. Dwight aimed his gun at Daryl, who in turn set his crossbow sights on the burned man. Jake jammed all of their guns, just in case any of them decided to try and be naughty.   
  
Sure enough, Jake felt one of the men squeeze the trigger of his automatic rifle. _Dumb fuck_ , Jake thought as he broke the man's finger.   
  
Rick walked up to Negan, triumphant.   
  
"Have you ever heard the one about this dumb fuck Negan who thought he had everything figured out, but fucking didn't?"   
  
Next time: Rick's forces face off against the Saviors in Alexandria.


	3. Something to Fear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jake intervenes in the battle between the Alexandrians and the Saviors. Chaos ensues.

Negan spat blood onto the asphalt.   
  
"Have you ever heard of the one about this dumb fuck named Rick who thought he knew shit, but didn't, and watched his little asian friend get fucking killed by Lucille, and was so stupid he forgot that Negan has a shit ton more men than him? That's one of my favorites."   
  
Rick cocked his gun. "You're really testing my patience right now, you prick."   
  
Gunshots.  
  
From everywhere.   
  
Jake detected bodies, at least ten, outside the walls. In trees, on top of houses, on the wall itself. _Snipers_ , he realized bitterly. Bullets sprayed the road, which in turn caused pandemonium. Rick's soldiers retreated into cover, while Jake held the Saviors, including Negan, in place. One of the sniper's bullets went clean through one of his own men.   
Jake reached out and grabbed the nearest sniper, one positioned on a wall behind him. He ripped his gun out of his hand and used it to shoot him at point blank range. His dead body fell over the other side of the wall. As Jake reached for the next sniper, he was shot at from several angles.   
  
He took cover on the porch of the nearest house. The wooden railing was destroyed by high powered sniper rounds. In the confusion, he failed to contain the rest of Negan's men in the street. A firefight had ensued--Abraham and Daryl were leading the attack, keeping the Saviors pinned near the van.   
  
Jake took control of one of them, a crony in a leather jacket. He forced him into the driver's seat. The crony started the van, put it in drive, and drove deeper into Alexandria. Once he was out of sight, Jake snapped his neck and turned off the van.   
  
Meanwhile, Daryl and Dwight were fighting in the street. Dwight kicked Daryl in the stomach. He landed two hard rights to Daryl's face before pushing him down. Jake snatched Dwight's foot and dragged him away from Daryl long enough for him to recover. The redneck slashed Dwight's left arm with his knife.   
  
Jake's attention was pulled back to the snipers. One bullet got dangerously close to his foot. He dislodged the piece of metal from the wood panel and sent it into the skull of a sniper hiding on a roof outside the walls. Jake relied on his telekinetic GPS to see beyond his sight. If he probed the air with his mind, he could see what was around via the mass of the objects.   
  
As Jake was focusing down another one of the hidden Saviors, he felt searing hot pain explode in his right leg. Before he looked at the damage, he knew he'd been shot. A moan of agony escaped his lips, all telekinetic focus lost in the sea of red hot pain. Jake dragged himself off of the porch and into the house, away from immediate danger.   
  
"God damn." Jake hissed. He assessed the situation. The bullet hadn't hit any major arteries, but it hurt so bad he couldn't collect enough focus to use telekinesis. An idea stuck his brain like a lightening bolt. Jake took in a shaky breath. He stared at the bullet wound long and hard, channeling all of his mental power. After a minute, he was able to rip the bullet from his thigh.   
  
After that, he passed out from the pain.   
  
Outside was chaos.  
  
Rick's troops were retreating further into Alexandria as the snipers began to take down some of them. Several residents had armed up at Olivia's and joined the core group in the assault, but most were inexperienced. Eugene blindly swung a short sword at a downed Savior, missed wildly, and crashed into the grass right next to him.   
  
"Fuck you, and fuck your mullet." The Savior smiled a bloody smile. Rosita pumped three bullets into him before he could kill Eugene.   
  
Rick shot at Negan, who now had an Ak-47 and fired in wide sprays. He caught sight of Rick and focused him down. Rick, however, was able to dodge each volley of gunfire. Abraham took out three Saviors before getting shot in the shoulder and right side. Aaron and Sasha covered him as he crawled to safety.   
  
Michonne got control of the supply van. She turned it around and aimed for the loose bunch of Saviors in the middle of the road. By that point, they had opened the gate and began pouring out into the unknown.   
  
"I'm going to get you fuckers real fucking good!" Negan warned as he made a hasty exit.   
  
The remaining snipers kept firing shots into Alexandria for the next half hour. Two bullets found their way into Alexandrians, killing them instantly. Once the gunfire finally ceased, Rick assessed the damage. The area was a warzone. Blood and carnage and smoke and death. They had their supplies back, but had pissed off Negan.   
  
_Still, it was a victory. However short lived it might be._   
  
"We showed the Saviors that we can fight back on this day." Rick said to his soldiers. "They thought we couldn't take them on, but we just drove them back! Look at what we can do united!"   
  
The speech was all for show, because deep down, Rick knew what had transpired today was a monumental mistake. He had just poked the bear and stole all of his honey. If anything, the battle had shown the group that they could repel a small Savior attack. _All because that freaky kid wanted revenge_ , Rick thought.   
  
Later in the day, Jake found himself on a bed.   
  
A warm yellow light bathed the room in a soft glow. The curtains were drawn. Jake's eyelids felt like bricks. He had to fight to keep them open, but even then everything was hazy. He registered a dull pain in his right leg. The vague memory of getting shot filled his brain, and suddenly he remembered the battle.   
  
He tried to sit up, realizing he was handcuffed to the bed.   
  
Rick Grimes creeped into the room.   
  
"Whasgoingon?" Jake slurred. His brown hair, usually swept to one side, was falling in his eyes. It was annoying. Jake tried to move it telekinetically, but failed to do so.   
  
"Do you have any idea what you started today?" Rick asked. His voice sounded like a faint echo. "You forced my hand! We were not ready to attack those Saviors, and now we're going to pay for it tenfold because of you. How selfish of you."   
  
"Let. Me. Go." Jake demanded. He fought to punctuate each word.   
  
"You have singlehandedly endangered this entire community. My friends, my family, they are now even more at risk than they were already." Rick stalked closer. Jake spotted something in his hands. _A gun? Knife?_   
  
"I've figured out how to dull your telekinesis. If you aren't able to concentrate, you can't use it. That's what this is," Rick gestured to the syringe he was holding, "Morphine. Should keep you out of action until I decide I need you again."   
  
Jake stared at Rick with an intensity he hadn't used in a long time. Usually, such a glare would kill someone, but Rick only glared back at him. Jake watched as Rick injected another dose of morphine into an IV attached to his arm.   
  
"Sweet dreams." Rick said.   
  
As he exited the room, Rick ran into Michonne walking down the hallway.

"How is he?" She asked, wrapping her arms around Rick's waist. 

"He'll be out for a couple days." He planted a quick kiss on Michonne's forehead. "Don't think he's ever been shot before."   
  
"He knows how to kill walkers, that's for sure. Took out four of them without me." The couple sprawled out on the living room couch. Rick ran his hands through Michonne's hair as she relaxed in his embrace.   
  
"Is Carl sleeping?" He whispered in her ear.  
  
"Didn't see him, but I'm guessing so, yeah."   
  
"Mhmm."   
  
Michonne chuckled. "Give it up, i'm tired."   
  
"So am I." Rick lied. His mind was swimming with possible scenarios of Negan's revenge. He imagined him capturing the next group that went scavenging and killing them in front of the gates. He imagined him busting down the gate with a huge truck and killing everybody in Alexandria and taking all of their supplies.   
  
_At least I have Lucille._   
  
That wretched bat that Negan had used to beat Glenn's face to a bloody pulp. That terrible night had been only a month ago, but it still held fresh in Rick's memory. Maggie still wasn't functioning, hiding at the Hilltop with Jesus. The rest of the group was growing tired as well. Tired of fighting. Tired of surviving. Tired of doing what they do best--killing. Rick instantly thought of Carol's little stunt where she tried to run away. Morgan had barely caught her before she had died.   
  
And then there was Jake.   
  
As much as Rick hated it, he knew he needed what that kid brought to the table. The wonders of the strange power he possessed, it could tear a Savior army apart. _All I have to do is get him under my control. If that little animal would just listen to me, the world would be ours._   
  
Rick dosed off thinking about what it would be like if he had telekinesis. He was plagued with strange dreams of flying and watching a giant Negan swing Lucille at Alexandria. He woke up in a cold sweat. He gently pushed himself out from under Michonne's sleeping form and checked on Jake in the guest bedroom. He was passed out. Handcuffs were still secure around his ankles and his hands.   
  
Still, Rick gave him another dose of the morphine.   
  
His next action was to wake Carl up. After knocking on his door and calling his name four times, Rick walked in to see an empty bed.   
  
"Carl?" He called. There was no answer.   
  
_Oh no._

Next time: Jake remembers the past. Rick discovers Carl is missing, and his most valuable asset is strung out on morphine.   
~TheChuckles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is honestly really fun for me to write! Is it fun for you guys to read? :)   
> ~TheChuckles


	4. Runaway

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rick discovers Carl is missing, and has trouble enlisting a drugged up Jake to help.

_The air was thick with the smell of the dead.  
_  
 _Corpses lay strewn all through the forest. Some hung off of trees by their entrails. Some were impaled on branches. Some were buried under piles of logs and rocks and dirt and blood. Some were suspended underwater, in the strong river that cut the forest in half or in the small lake embedded deep in the confines of the thick wood.  
_  
 _Some had been dead, others had been alive not an hour before.  
_  
 _All was silent.  
_  
 _Jake sensed a presence behind him.  
_  
 _"Are you alive?" asked a quivering voice. It belonged to a boy four years younger than the one who had caused an unfathomable amount of destruction.  
_  
 _"No, i'm not." Jake said.  
_  
 _The young boy tilted his head. "But you talk?"  
_  
 _Jake turned, exposing his blood soaked self to the boy. Long brown hair stuck red to his dirt caked skin. His clothes were shredded and covered in mud, barely clinging onto his body. He held no weapons. Instead, his fingers were battered and bruised.  
_  
 _His face was emotionless.  
_  
 _"That doesn't matter. Just leave."  
_  
 _"But...you're the first person i've seen in weeks! Well, alive anyway. I'm Louis, what's your name?"  
_  
 _"I don't have a name." Jake muttered. "Go away."  
_  
 _"I don't have any weapons," Louis started. He crept closer to Jake, although something in his gut told him not to. "I'm just looking for someone to talk to. It's really lonely out here."  
_  
 _"Please..." Jake whispered.  
_  
 _"What happened here?" Louis's eyes widened. "Was there a battle here?"  
_  
 _"Go..."  
_  
 _Louis stopped. "Are you bitten? Is that why you won't talk?"  
_  
 _"Away!" Jake screamed. He tore Louis in half and flung him far, far away. The poor boy's scream was cut off as he died, but it turned into laughter. Jake was surrounded with a cruel laughter that only intensified in sound. He tried to telekinetically push it away but failed.  
_  
 _He was kneeling on a shaggy carpet. Hands tied behind his back, his head pounding as it suffered from a concussion. A cruel man's laugh drowned out the screams of Jake's mom in the other room.  
_  
 _Jake pushed with his mind as hard as he could, but nothing would happen. His grip on his telekinesis was slipping with every scream. Every bout of laughter. Every pulse of his heart. Everything was pushing him farther towards the edge.  
_  
 _The door opened. Two men emerged, one with Jake's mother in tow. He dragged her by her hair, her beautiful blonde hair, to the front of the house. Jake heard a door open, heard the growls of the dead, heard his mother being torn apart.  
_  
 _"Oh, cheer up, sport." One of the men said. "You're next."  
_  
 _Each man grabbed Jake by the arm. They began to drag him towards the room. He resisted as much as possible, but they were too strong. This is how I die, Jake thought. My last thoughts will be of terrible, terrible things and the men who did them. And I am powerless.  
_  
 _Once they passed the door frame, however, the men were gone. Jake was laying on a bed of soft green grass. The night air was pleasantly warm. Jake found himself gazing upon the beautiful stars. He admired them--envied them. They were millions of miles away from the hell he was living.  
_  
 _They were so calm, so infinite. Thousands of years ago, someone probably was laying in the exact same spot he was in now, thinking the same things. Jake wondered if they felt the yearning to simply jump and become one of those stars, to escape the chaos that was unfolding on Earth. The tragedy, the death.  
_  
 _The sleeping form of his best friend accompanied him. Jake marveled how sleep made somebody so oblivious, so vulnerable. Sleeping was, in its way, like being one of the stars. As much as he wanted the sweet bliss of ignorance that sleep brought, Jake knew that he wouldn't have that luxury anytime soon.  
_  
 _The world is about to end, and I can control things with my mind.  
_  
 _Just stare at the stars, Jake told himself. Enjoy it while you still can.  
_  
 _He didn't enjoy it long.  
_  
 _Jake blinked. When he opened his eyes, he was staring into the face of a crazed woman. Her hair was a damp blonde mat, her face marked with two red scars where she had been cut. They ran along the curve of her right eye, from her forehead down to her chin.  
_  
 _"You have to do this." The woman said, her voice swimming with insanity. Jake's vision was blurred, his head light. He recognized the signs of being drugged, even in his deluded state.  
_  
 _"I won't be your slave." Jake said, turning his head away from her wicked smile.  
_  
 _"You listen here you little shit. If you don't use your little power and take out those men outside the walls, everybody in this community will die. Do you understand, you selfish prick? We don't have the manpower to withstand a siege any longer."  
_  
 _"Fuck yourself." Jake spat in her crazy face. Her crazed smile turned into an intense scowl.  
_  
 _"Wake up!" The woman screamed, bashing the side of Jake's head. "Wake up! Wake up..."_   
__________________________________________________________________________________   
  
"Wake up, damn it!"   
  
Pain erupted along the right side of his face. Jake shot his eyes open in frantic fear. He didn't know where he was. A thousand terrible thoughts surged through his head all at once. He saw a wild Rick Grimes staring down at him, a ravenous look splayed on his face.   
  
_Cheer up, sport. You're next._   
  
Jake sent Rick flying across the room. He crashed into the wall. Jake held him there as he unlocked the handcuffs restraining him to the bed. Rick reached for his gun, but Jake froze him in place.   
  
"I could kill you right now." Jake said as he floated towards Rick. "I could destroy this place, all that you've built. I could kill everyone that you love. You do realize that, don't you?" He was inches away from Rick's face now, fighting the urge to snap his neck. To run away, again.  
  
"My son..." Rick started, but Jake held his mouth shut.   
  
"Your son could die. Michonne could die. Daryl could die. You could die. Don't ever presume to have control over me or my power ever again. Am I clear, Rick?"   
  
Rick nodded.   
  
Jake roughly dropped Rick onto the ground. "My son is missing." He choked out. "Nobody has seen him since yesterday."  
  
"Oh, so now you need me again, don't you?"   
  
Rick stared at the floor. "Yeah."   
  
"I will not be used, Rick, I hope you understand that. People have tried to use me before. People who have led communities like Alexandria. They wanted me to kill all of their enemies for them. Kept me drugged up just like you did. Threatened the people I cared about, until eventually there were no more people I cared about."   
  
Rick was at a loss for words. "I didn't know."   
  
"When there were no more people I cared about, I became dangerous. Entire groups were destroyed because I felt like it. If somebody looked at me wrong, I slaughtered them. Eventually, it came to the point where I killed anybody I came across because I knew what would happen if I let them live. They would discover my telekinesis and try to use it for their own good. I would get hurt, so I hurt them before they could hurt me."  
  
Jake couldn't hold back the tears anymore.   
  
"I almost killed you, Rick. I was closer than you'll ever know, but you know why I didn't? Because I want to change. I don't want to be a monster anymore. I want to help people now, but drugging me and chaining me to a bed isn't going to do the trick.   
  
"I was wrong," Rick started. "I shouldn't have done that. I'm sorry. I was, am, mad at the situation you've put us in. Negan will have his revenge, and now my son is missing. Think that's a coincidence?"   
  
"Negan won't do shit to anybody. I won't allow him to, Rick. Are you sure he took Carl?"   
  
"He hasn't been seen in over a day, so yeah, I'm pretty sure Negan has something to do with this. You're the only one I know that can infiltrate the Savior's complex and get him out without causing a bloodbath."   
  
Jake floated back to the floor. He put pressure on his injured leg, but it was too painful. He resumed levitating in midair. "I can get him. Quiet or bloody?"   
  
"Quiet. The longer you remain a secret, the better. I can only imagine what would happen if someone saw you flying around somewhere." Both of them smiled at that thought.   
  
"Yeah, it's not exactly normal, I suppose." Jake chuckled. He wiped the tears from his face.   
  
"I'll lead another team to search the forest around here. Who knows, maybe he got caught up with some walkers. I doubt it, but it's a possibility we have to explore."   
  
"Like I said Rick, Negan won't do shit to Carl. I won't allow it to happen." Jake levitated back to the ground. "Give me some crutches or something so nobody has to see me floating around. I'll sneak out when your search party leaves."   
  
Not an hour later, Rick led a group of fifteen Alexandrians, _excluding_ Michonne, into the woods to search for his son.   
  
"I'm coming with you." Michonne was already packed and ready to go.   
  
Rick smiled a sad smile. "Listen, I need you here in case the Saviors surprise us. You know under any different circumstances..."   
  
Michonne closed the distance between them and locked him in a passion filled kiss. A single tear rolled down her cheek. Rick was the one to pull away, although he desired more.   
  
"You're special to me, Michonne..." Rick trailed off. He left not a minute later, leaving Michonne to watch over Alexandria.   
  
With the help of Sasha, Jake got outfitted with a pair of crutches to use.   
  
"How's Abraham?" He asked her as they were walking back to Rick's.   
  
"He hasn't woken up yet." Sasha wiped a tear from her eye. "Eugene removed the bullets and sewed the wounds, but he's no surgeon. We have to get Dr. Carson from the Hilltop down here, or else..."   
  
Jake made a mental note to swing by the Hilltop somehow and get their doctor to check in on Abraham. "Sasha, I know you don't know me, like at all, but if you need to talk or anything...i've lost people, too."   
  
_Cheer up, sport. You're next._   
  
"Thanks, man." Once they reached the house, Sasha went to check in on Abraham. Jake had sort of figured out that they were an "item" or whatever, and he genuinely cared about their welfare. Like he had said, he was trying to change.   
  
Half an hour after the search party left, Jake made his exit. He armed himself with a pistol and two knives he had managed to snag from Olivia's the day before. Jake made sure to carry two extra clips in his back pockets. They would be just for show, and Carl would probably need a weapon.   
  
The sky was growing dark, so Jake threw on a black hoodie and dark pants to insure that he would be nearly invisible as he traveled through the air. He approached the wall behind the house, didn't sense any bodies nearby, and leaped over the wall and flew into the night.   
  
_Now, where exactly am I going?_   
  
Next Time: While Jake infiltrates the Savior's compound, Rick does some soul searching with Carol   
~TheChuckles


	5. Silent and Deadly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rick, Carol, and Jake search for Carl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a precursor that I wrote the majority of this when it was late, so if there's any spelling errors I didn't catch, i'm sorry in advance :)   
> ~TheChuckles

Jake relished the feel of the cold wind. Summer was in full swing, but the air above was cooler and far more refreshing. Up there, there were no howls of the dead. There were no screams from the living. It helped him clear his mind. His telekinetic map had all the focus it needed to find the Savior compound.   
  
It was too dark to see any signs of civilization. Jake felt around the area for a large group of people. He detected a large presence behind him about 3 miles. Alexandria. Rick had said that the Savior compound must be close, but nobody really knew where it was exactly.   
  
After traveling for another twenty minutes, slowly probing the area, Jake picked up another large signal to the west. He lowered himself closer to the trees as he got closer so he could get a look at what he was dealing with.   
  
There were walls. They appeared to be made of large logs. Jake left the cover of the trees and flew directly over the wall. The two sentries standing watch didn't even think to look above them. There was a big house near the back of the complex. A museum or something. The rest of the housing appeared to just be RV's and tents. It didn't look very formidable.   
  
_I must be at the Hilltop._   
  
While Jake searched, back near Alexandria, Rick was wandering the dark forest with none other than Carol. The search party had split into groups of two to enlarge their search radius.   
  
"Carl!" Rick whispered into the night. "Carl! Can you hear me?"   
  
Carol peered through the scope of her sniper rifle. The surrounding area was clear of the dead and the living.   
  
"Rick, it's getting late." She said.   
  
Rick kept walking. He didn't even bother to look at Carol. "I don't care. We don't stop until we find him."   
  
"Not all of these people can handle themselves at night. Especially with the Saviors out here. Something bad could happen. This might be a trap." Carol grabbed Rick by the shoulder, forcing him to face her. "We need to regroup inside the walls."   
  
"He's my son!" Rick said harshly. He pulled away from Carol's touch. "If this is some sort of play from Negan, then we play until I get Carl back." Rick scoffed. "And don't tell me that these people can't handle themselves. If they survived that night when the walkers got in, then they can handle a simple search."   
  
Carol looked Rick in the eye. Even in the dark, even in his state, her stare gave him chills. "Cut the shit, Rick. You listen the fuck up, sunshine, because this reckless shit we're doing right now is exactly what the Saviors are expecting. This isn't you, Rick. There's something wrong."   
  
"Yeah, Carl is missing." Rick glanced into the dark.   
  
"I said cut the shit." Carol scowled. "What we've started, this is bigger than the Governor. Bigger than Terminus. Bigger than those walkers at the walls. Negan is organized, more so than us. We've taken out one of his outposts, killed at least twenty of his men, and he still has the advantage. Glenn is dead, Abraham is dying, and we are still in no position to mount any kind of offense."   
  
Rick thought of Jake, of how he was most likely nearing the Savior compound at that very moment. The idea of telling Carol about him crossed his mind, but she would assume that he was going batshit crazy again. Maybe he was. He didn't even know anymore.   
  
_Do crazy people know when they're going crazy?_   
  
"Rick?" Carol said into his silence.   
  
"What?" Rick asked, followed by a whistle from somewhere near them.   
  
Another half an hour of travel, and Jake picked up another strong presence directly underneath him. He floated down until he could make out what looked to be a factory. He heard the telltale moans of the dead nearby, sensed them underneath. Their jagged movements were a dead giveaway to his telekinesis.   
  
Jake's leg was still throbbing, but he touched down on concrete, outside a chainlink fence that surrounded the factory. Walkers were chained up along it, making a secondary barrier. Some were ripped in half, while others were just heads hanging off of the fence. The entrance, a sliding chain link door, was especially surrounded by the undead. Jake moved them aside so they wouldn't bite. As an extra precaution, he prevented their mouths from moving. _Just in case._   
  
Once he was past the fence, he moved in on the factory.   
  
At least a dozen cars were randomly parked in the space between the fence and the entry to the factory. Jake sensed three armed guards five stories up, hiding in the windows on the top floor. One was sleeping, the other two were busy talking to each other. All three experienced a sudden pain as their heads snapped 180 degrees around.   
  
With the guards eliminated, Jake entered the factory uncontested through a door to the left of a retracting garage door. On his right, Jake noticed a set of stairs. They transcended to the outside of the factory, and went all the way to the roof. Another set of stairs was on the far left, which were to access the inside of the building.   
  
There were at least one hundred people in the building. Most were on the second floor. Jake figured that's where they all slept. Only five were on the ground floor with him, patrolling the area. He couldn't tell what kind of factory it had been, but it was now cleared out. Where machinery once stood, crates and armored trucks now used the space.   
  
Jake spotted the bright yellow beam of a flashlight at the back of the room. Otherwise, the place was pitch black. He reached inside the flashlight and killed the battery. The light was extinguished.   
  
"Son'va bitch." The Savior said. His voice echoed faintly. Jake floated to the stairs and went to the third level. This floor had people, 36 to be exact. Blankets strung up as barriers and tents littered the space. _There is no way Negan would be here._ The fourth floor was packed with weapons and food. Racks and racks of assault rifles and bins of pistols. Jake grabbed a random duffle bag and filled it with guns and ammo. Not only would it aide the group, but it would also cause a little bit of chaos among the Saviors.   
  
Now that Jake was inside the factory, he could differentiate where bodies were located. There were eight people on the top floor, level five. It would make sense that Negan would be up there. Him and Carl and guards to keep him safe.   
  
_How cute, he thinks he's safe._   
  
One of the people was guarding the stairwell. Jake lifted himself up until he was eye level with the man. He sent him face first into the concrete wall on his left with enough force to explode his head. The man's body tumbled down the stairs. Jake stripped him of his weapons, a rifle, pistol, and knife, and added them to the duffle telekinetically. He left his bag of goodies on the landing.   
  
Jake opened the door ever so slowly. It creaked slightly. Once it was open enough for him to squeeze in, Jake froze the door and slipped inside. He was in a hallway, with doors on both sides. There was actually light on this floor, a pair of light bulbs attached to the wall in the middle of the hallway. A Savior was patrolling at the far end, his back to Jake.   
  
Using his power, Jake pulled the knife from the man's belt and slit his throat. With the minor distraction out of his way, he focused on finding Carl.   
  
Of the six remaining people on the floor, all but one was sleeping. Five of them were at a room on the far right side. Jake locked the door from the outside. The last person was in the room directly opposite them. This door was already locked, but that didn't stop Jake from opening it.   
  
"Carl?" Jake whispered. He flicked the light on. On a bare mattress in the corner was Carl, huddled in a ball against the wall. He woke from a daze when his eyes locked onto his savior.   
  
"Jake?" He sounded surprised. He sprung to his feet. "Where's everyone else?"   
  
_Shit._ "It's just me. We have to go!"   
  
Carl looked puzzled. "But...how did you get here by yourself?" Nonetheless, he followed Jake out of his cell. They made for the stairs, but stopped dead in their tracks when they heard boots ascending the stairs.   
  
"They're coming!" Carl said.  
  
Jake knew he was about to fuck things up a lot, but he had no choice. He reached out and brought the duffle bag to him. He caught it in midair. Carl stared at him with wild eyes. Two rifles came out, loaded themselves, and flew into Jake's hands. The duffle fell into Carl's.   
  
"What the _fuck_?"   
  
"It's a really long story." Jake said. "Where's a window?"   
  
"How even?"   
  
"Carl! Window!" Jake shot the first Savior that came out of the stairwell. He kept the rifles firing at random intervals as he led Carl further into the hallway. He practically had to drag him.   
  
"There's...there's one in the room next to mine." Carl said absentmindedly. His gaze was focused on the guns firing themselves, suspended in midair. Jake brought them back before any of the Saviors saw them. He gave one to Carl.   
  
The room was just as barren as Carl's had been, but a window sat at eye level. Jake shattered it with the duffle bag. "Climb on!" He instructed, but Carl didn't listen. Short on time, Jake grabbed Carl telekinetically and threw him onto his back.   
  
"What are you doing?" Carl screamed. He tried to wiggle off of Jake's back, but couldn't untangle his legs from Jake's waist.   
  
"It's gonna be like a piggyback ride, except we'll be flying. You'll wanna hold on." Jake plucked Carl's rifle from his hands and put it in the floating duffle. He locked Carl's hands around his chest and took off into the night.   
  
"Holy shit!" Carl screamed. The two boys, plus the duffle bag, flew out of the factory and shot across the forest at a solid forty miles per hour. The wind had picked up, but Jake stayed on course. Even with the added weight of Carl, who was now clinging to him with white knuckles, Jake navigated the air like a professional.   
  
He knew he would have to explain everything once they reached their destination. Hopefully, Rick wouldn't mind that his son knew that Jake had telekinesis. Somehow, Jake figured that revelation would be overshadowed by the act of returning Carl from Negan's control.   
  
They reached the Hilltop within twenty minutes. Jake landed on the road out of their guard's sight. Once he released Carl from his grip, the boy stumbled and crawled away from Jake.   
  
"What the fuck are you?" His voice was filled with terror.   
  
"I'll explain everything, but we need to get into the Hilltop first. I need to get the doctor."   
  
"I'm not-"   
  
Jake shut Carl's mouth. "I will tell you everything, and it might seem real terrifying right now, but that doctor is the only one who can save Abraham. We need to get him, but in order to do that, we have to act normal. We were on a scouting mission and got ambushed by Saviors. We're the only survivors, okay?"   
  
Carl nodded.   
  
"Good." He unfroze Carl's mouth. The poor boy was trembling. They began to walk towards the Hilltop. The pain in Jake's leg was excruciating. He felt the hot flow of blood causing his jeans to stick to his leg. _The stitches must have come out during the commotion. How long have I been bleeding?_   
  
Jake fell over. Carl saw the blood and ran for the Hilltop.  
  
Next Time: Carl and Jake recover at the Hilltop. Rick defends Alexandria.


	6. Burning Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jake and Carl recover at the Hilltop. Rick has a hard time keeping everything together at Alexandria.

Rick was terrified.  
  
A man with half of his face burned stepped out from behind a nearby tree. Dwight had a vicious smile on his face, the right half made more sinister by the wrinkled skin. Three more Saviors revealed themselves. Rick and Carol were surrounded.   
  
"Look what we have here, boys." Dwight said. He leveled his gun at Rick's head. A string of gunshots echoed out from the south. "Looks like the others found some more of them."   
  
Rick remained silent. Dwight carried only a pistol, but the other three Saviors had automatic rifles. _Carol was right. It was a trap._   
  
"Please don't hurt us." Carol whimpered. She lowered her gun. "We're just looking for his son."  
  
Dwight smirked. "The one with the one eye? We know. Ya'll are looking in the wrong place. Your son is safe and sound back at our Sanctuary. Had a little chat with Negan today--"   
  
"I'll kill you, you son of a bitch." Rick spat. He pulled out his Colt Python and aimed it at Dwight. "If Negan did anything--"   
  
"Please shut up." Dwight silenced Rick by shooting the space next to his head. "Negan wants you alive. Now, how about we go back to Alexandria and have a nice chat? Sound good?"   
  
"We'll give you the supplies back!" Carol pleaded. She had to try to get their guard down, even if they didn't believe her. After running off two weeks before, Carol had recovered and learned that feigning weakness could be used as a deadly weapon.   
  
"Oh, you most certainly will. Move along now." The three other Saviors closed in on Carol and Rick.   
  
"Please!" Carol yelled, gunshots punctuating her plea. Within seconds, all three Saviors went down. Clean shots to each of their heads leaked blood. Rosita, Aaron, and Spencer came out from the darkness. Each had their guns trained on Dwight.   
  
"Yeah, Dwight. Let's move along. I can't wait to have that chat now." Carol taunted. Aaron tied Dwight's hands, but Rick took the pleasure of knocking him out. The group made it back to Alexandria just as another group, consisting of Daryl, Eugene and Father Gabriel, was returning.   
  
"Got at least three dead." Daryl said. His arms were covered in blood. "Them bastards set a damn trap, Rick."   
  
"It backfired. We got one of Negan's lieutenants." Daryl locked eyes on Dwight. The blood in the redneck's body began to boil.   
  
"He needs to be killed!" Daryl moved in on the unconscious Savior. Carol stopped him. "He killed Denise, Rick! He deserves to die!"   
  
"He has information." Rick said. "And he can be used as a bartering chip. We can trade him for Carl." Daryl wasn't happy, but he knew Rick was right. _I'm gonna open a can of whoop ass on that fucker._   
  
Just then, Sasha and Michonne came running to the gate. Spencer and Aaron led Dwight to Morgan's cell. Rick sighed in relief when he saw Michonne was uninjured.   
"Group of them showed up at the front gate. We led them away, but they shot two of--" Michonne was cut off by Rick's lips as he abruptly kissed her. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close. Even if Carl was still in Negan's hands, she was safe. And at that moment in time, that was all that mattered.   
  
Their reunion was cut short by Sasha. "Two guards were shot at. One was killed, the other is in bad shape." She looked behind the group gathered around. "Where's the others?"   
  
"I saw Tobin's group chasing after somebody when we were attacked." Rosita said. "Don't know where Heath or Scott are at. They must still be out there."   
  
Rick hated being pulled back into reality. All he wanted to do was cuddle with Michonne until all of his problems washed away and became insignificant. "Sasha, keep watch for them. Be careful, we know there are more Saviors out there."   
  
"But I need to check on Abraham." She complained.   
  
"You can't do anything for him anyways." Rosita spat.  
  
Sasha opened her mouth to reply, but Rick cut in before she had the opportunity to speak. "You're our best shot, Sasha. Eugene is doing all he can with Abraham right now. He'll be fine."   
  
Saha shot an angry look at Rosita, but did what Rick told her to.   
  
_At least Michonne is alright._  
  
Carl was terrified.   
  
The two guards had held him up until a fat man stumbled out to meet him, clad in pajamas. With him came someone who looked far more prepared, a man with long brown hair and a knowing look. Carl hastily explained why he was there. He made sure to stick to the story Jake had told him, because, well, who the _fuck_ would believe the truth?   
  
The man in pajamas, Gregory, had the other man, who he simply called "Jesus", drag Jake inside the Hilltop. Carl was frisked and allowed to enter. He spent the night watching Dr. Carson work on Jake's leg. All he had to do was clean the gunshot wound and redo the stitches. While he was at it, Dr. Carson changed the bandage covering Carl's eye. It had somehow gotten bloody during the escape.   
  
That left him where he was now, watching Jake sleep. They were in the big house, which had once been a museum or something, Carl couldn't quite remember what Gregory had told him. It didn't matter. All Carl could think about was the escape from the Sanctuary. _The things Jake had done...that wasn't supposed to be possible._   
  
Carl was convincing himself he had made the whole thing up when he heard Jake stir. He froze up, not even daring to breath. Carl grabbed his pistol and aimed it at Jake's head. _If he tries anything, i'll kill him._   
  
"Put that down before I make you." Jake said. He sounded tired. Still, Carl didn't budge.   
  
"I don't trust yo--" The gun disassembled in Carl's hands, each piece hitting the floor with a clunk. "That was my gun!" Carl protested.   
  
Jake sat up. "You were aiming it at me. Listen, we need to talk about last night."  
  
"Yeah, what was that? Please tell me I was in some sort of coma dream or something, because that shit isn't possible."  
  
"It is with me."   
  
Carl wasn't convinced. "How? I used to read comics about superheroes that could fly and that, but I didn't think they were real."   
  
"I don't know how it happened, but it started a month before the end. I just woke up one day with this major headache, and the next thing I knew, I was flying across my room. I thought I was losing my mind. The first time I moved something with my mind, I almost killed myself."  
  
"I wondered what the fuck was wrong with me. I thought I was insane. Nobody would've believed me if I tried to talk to them, so I just lived with it. When shit hit the fan, I realized I could use my telekinesis to survive. I trained, honed in my skill, and it's the only thing that's kept me alive."   
  
Carl digested Jake's explanation. "So, you can like, kill walkers with the...telekinesis or whatever?"   
  
"I can move things with my mind, that's the technical definition. I read about it in a book at a library once. But yeah, i've killed without moving a muscle. Don't terrible things without a second thought."   
  
"Does anybody else know?" Carl's eyes grew wide. "My dad knows, doesn't he? That's why you rescued me."   
  
"He has no idea where the Savior compound is, but I found it. I can sense people and things by their mass, feel them with my mind. That's how I found you in that room. Your dad led a group outside the walls to search the forest, while I came and actually got you."   
  
"I'm sorry, but this is just too much." Carl looked away from Jake.   
  
"I'm dangerous, Carl, but i'm on your side. I want to hurt the Saviors as much as the rest of you. Can we at least put aside my freaky power and pretend everything is cool until we get home?"   
  
"As long as you don't hurt any of us. Deal?"   
  
"Deal."  
  
Both boys dozed off. They were awoken by the door opening. Maggie, now sporting a noticeable belly bump, and the man called Jesus walked in. Carl embraced Maggie, careful not to touch her stomach.   
  
"How's everything?" He asked.   
  
"It's been difficult, but i'm managing. This place isn't all that bad." Maggie smiled. "What are you doing here? And who is that?" Maggie gestured to Jake.   
  
"Negan came to take supplies from us, but dad attacked them as they were leaving. Got the supplies back, but I wanted to go after Negan. It was stupid, and five minutes after leaving I was caught. They brought me to their home. Negan tried to taunt me, but ended up just leaving me locked in a room."   
  
"How'd you get out?"   
  
"Rescue party from Alexandria. I broke out through a window and climbed down a fire exit, and they saved me. The Saviors found us, and the two of us are all that's left." Carl felt weird lying on the spot, but the truth was simply unbelievable.   
  
"Hi. I'm Jake." Jake said when Maggie looked at him.   
  
"Maggie. Are you alright?"   
  
"I'll heal."  
  
"You're Rick's son, right?" Jesus asked Carl.   
  
"Yeah, you know him, right?"   
  
Jesus smirked. "Yeah, I do. Listen, we can take you back to Alexandria. You said they need our doctor as well, right?"   
  
"Yeah, Abraham's been shot. It's not good." Jake said.   
  
"We'll leave shortly then."   
  
It was late in the day when Sasha told Rick an envoy from the Hilltop had arrived. Michonne and him raced to the gate. It was open already, and Carl was waiting for them. Rick couldn't help but shed tears of joy as he reconnected with his lost son. He had Michonne, and he had Carl, and there was no way Negan would ever hurt either one of them again.   
  
"Rick!" Jesus called. "We have a doctor to help Abraham."   
  
"Follow me!" Sasha said, dragging Dr. Carson along with her.  
  
"Maggie?" Rick asked, astonished. It had been weeks since he last saw her. They exchanged a knowing look, nothing more.   
  
"The boys said there was an attack. Carl told me he tried to follow Negan, but was captured. " Jesus said. Jake stood next to him, leaning on a pair of crutches.   
  
Rick glared at his son. He would have to talk to him later. "Yeah, they tried to take our supplies. We fought them off. We have one of their lieutenants, Dwight."   
  
Jesus cracked his knuckles. "Then we have work to do."   
  
Next Time: Dwight is interrogated.   
~TheChuckles


	7. Left, Right, Left

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rick enlists Jake's help in interrogating Dwight.

Rick emerged from the cell with blood on his hands. He himself was trembling in the slightest way. Anger, instead of fear, was the cause of this reflex. An unconscious Dwight was slumped over in the chair he was tied to.   
  
"Beating him unconscious won't make him spill anything." Morgan said. Rick sat at the table he was at. Morgan began to clean his bruised hands with a rag.   
  
"I know, Morgan, it's just frustrating. He hasn't said anything that we can use. He won't tell me how many men they have, or what other communities they have under their control. I couldn't help myself."   
  
"That kid who rescued Carl knows where the Sanctuary is." Morgan added, "and they don't have any of us anymore. That has to count for something."   
  
"Counts for little, Morgan. Negan could roll up to the gates and destroy this place if his ego wasn't so huge. I will guarantee by the end of the day he'll know his trap went awry. There will be a response."   
  
"His people were combing the forest around here. We need to take back the land around Alexandria if we have any chance of survival, Rick."   
  
"Well, we have a group out there right now moving defenses into position..." Rick's mind wandered back to Jake, who was also out there. _He can do things to people_. The idea that sprouted in his head threw Rick's ethics into question, but they were at war.   
  
All he had to do was convince Jake.   
  
Outside the walls, Jake watched as several Alexandrians maneuver cars into strategic positions. Two white vans were placed directly on either side of the gate, angled outward. Keys for both were hidden inside, along with small rations and ammunition. Someone coming from inside could crawl inside either vehicle and drive away on a moment's notice.  
  
After the vans were set in position, a five foot deep trench was dug along the front wall, laced with spikes and broken glass. The rain made the walls of the trench more slippery, more volatile to those who fell in. The road leading into the gate was untouched, which allowed for vehicles to reach the gates. They utilized the ruined houses on either side of the road by setting up concealed sniper nests within.   
  
"Now i'll finally have some more backup." Sasha commented. "It gets pretty damn impossible to take out everybody when you're the only one with a birdseye view."   
  
"Unless you happen to be the best shot in Alexandria." Jake threw a sly smile at Sasha. "Don't deny it."   
  
"Oh, i'm definitely not!"   
  
Sasha finished her short break and went back to work on adding wood spikes around the gate. Jake hated being sidelined. It was made worse by the fact that he was grounded whenever in the open. Inside the room he had in Rick's house, he prefered to float instead of hobbling on those stupid crutches.   
  
The Saviors were still out there, somewhere, plotting. _At least we have Dwight._   
  
"Enjoying yourself?" Jake was startled by Rick. He shielded the both of them from the onslaught of rain with an umbrella.   
  
"We both know the answer to that question."   
  
"Listen, I have to ask you to do something you're going to hate."   
  
A wave of dread washed over Jake. "Well, don't hold back."   
  
"Dwight isn't talking. I need you to make him." Rick cast his eyes to a nearby puddle.   
  
"So i'm your torturer now? I don't have telepathy, I have telekinesis. There's no way I can read his mind."   
  
"You can do subtle things to mess with him. Tighten his bonds, keep him from falling asleep. You'd be in the back of the room, out of sight. I'd do the dirty work. Jake, this needs to be done. I hope I don't have to tell you why."   
  
"I will do it, but know that I am strongly against it."   
  
"Fair enough."   
  
The pair made their way back inside the walls of Alexandria. Rick led Jake to the building where Dwight was being held. They descended a set of stairs and emerged in the basement where the interrogation was happening. Morgan's cell was built in the corner, thick steel bars cutting out a 10 x 10 ft square for their prisoner.   
  
"We can play games all day, Dwight, or you can just tell me what you know." It was Jesus going at him this time. His silky brown hair fell in a sheet across his shoulders, the sleeves of his white shirt rolled up to his elbows. He looked exhausted.   
  
Dwight laughed, the bruises from Rick's beating shining prominently. "Keep trying, Jesus. Negan'll be here soon enough."   
  
Dwight was made to face the wall, so he couldn't see who else was inside the room. Another tactic from Rick to unnerve him. Maggie sat sleeping at a picnic table on the other side of the room, along with Morgan and Daryl. Rick led Jake to a secluded spot next to the stairs. He was hidden in the shadows.   
  
"Do your magic. The faster you do this, the sooner this ends."   
  
Rick entered the cell to stand next to Jesus. He could faintly hear them talking to Dwight. Jake slouched against the wall, cold cement leaching the warmth out of his already drained body. His hands were shaking subtly, uncontrollably. That tended to happen when he had to use his powers against his will.   
  
He was well accustomed to that feeling. Multiple instances came rushing to the forefront of his brain, but he shoved them down. He was about to add to the list.   
  
Jake began by tightening the ropes around Dwight's wrists. He followed by doing the same to the ones holding his feet to the legs of the chair. Next, he began to restrict Dwight's leather jacket until the material stuck to his sweaty skin.   
  
"How many of you are there?" Rick asked. He might as well have been talking to a brick wall.   
  
"Fuck yourself, prick." Dwight responded. Beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. He attempted to move his hands, but the ropes were constricting him to much. He tried to swivel his head to the rest of the room, but for some reason he couldn't move a muscle.   
  
"I'll give you a little bit to rethink that answer." Rick and Jesus left the cell. Jake realized he would have to get more intense to crack their prisoner. He racked his mind for the techniques he'd used in the past to squeeze information out of people.   
  
_Hmm...squeeze...  
_  
Dwight soon found himself incapable of taking deep breaths. He was forced to take rapid shallow ones. The feeling of being smooshed inside a box became more intense. Sweat was falling in his eyes. His mouth was suddenly bone dry. He'd been tied down for at least twelve hours, by his estimation. He had held out so far, it wouldn't be long until Negan showed up...  
  
_Or would he?_   
  
Doubts began to creep into his head. His relationship with Negan was tense enough as it is. Would he risk more men to save a lieutenant that he didn't care for? What if he was left to stay in that damn cell until he died of thirst?  
  
Rick came back fifteen minutes later, although to Dwight it had felt like hours. He was beginning to fall apart. If Jake was able to see his victim's burned face, he knew he wouldn't have been able to perform on the level he was. _Once this is all over, I can't do this to anybody ever again_. After all, he was trying to turn a new leaf.   
  
"Listen, you prick, i'll make a deal with you," Dwight began. "I tell you some information, and you untie me from this goddamn chair."   
  
Rick made a show of thinking about it. " _Some_ information, Dwight? I need more than that."   
  
Dwight contemplated his immediate survival and sanity to Negan's wrath. He decided he was more important than that baseball wielding prick. "I tell you everything, and you give me food and water and untie me." He fought to not add a "please" at the end.   
  
"I suppose. How many of you are there?"  
  
"Somewhere near 200."   
  
"How many are capable of fighting?"   
  
"120." Dwight said through gritted teeth. It felt so, so wrong to betray his people.   
  
Rick smiled, now that he was able to make real progress. "How many communities do you lord over?"   
  
"Four. This one, Hilltop, and two others." Dwight screwed his eyes shut. Jake put a stop to that, and forced his eyelids back up with a snap. The movement sent a jolt of pain to Dwight's brain.   
  
"Where are the other two?"   
  
"Jesus knows."   
  
"Fair enough. What does Negan have planned for us? I'm sure he has some plot for revenge."   
  
Dwight began to hyperventilate. He spoke rapidly. "He wants to break you. He told me to rough you up and scare your people. He doesn't want to kill you, but he's not afraid of killing your people."   
  
Rick shook his head. "Not good enough." Upon hearing that, Jake drove the top part of the chair into the soft skin underneath Dwight's shoulder. He also tightened his squeeze on Dwight until the poor man could hardly breath.   
  
"Okay, okay...I know he wants those supplies. We can't survive without the stuff we steal from you guys. Not all of us are fighters. We have children, too. He wanted to stroll in here after I took over. But you caught me, so here we are. Is that good enough?"   
  
Rick smiled a dark smile. "For now. Just know that we can put you back in this chair at any time. So don't go thinking you have the upper hand, because you don't." Rick cut Dwight's bonds. Jake used his telekinesis to force him into the corner until Rick was out and locked the cell door.  
  
"Knew he'd crack. He tries to act tough, but that doesn't hide the fact he's a little bitch." Daryl said to Rick.   
  
"All that matters is that he's talking now." Morgan cut in. He was physically disgusted by Daryl's bloodlust. Rick pondered what he would do if he knew what Jake had done.   
  
"We know Negan is planning to hit us soon, so we need to hurry up those defenses. Now that we have his lieutenant, it may give us some time to negotiate with him. Jesus, is what Dwight said true? Do you know of these other communities?"   
  
"Yes. I've attempted to reach out to them in the past, make an alliance against the Saviors, but we never had the manpower."   
  
"But we do now?" Daryl cut in.  
  
"With Alexandria, yes. Rick, I think it's time I brought you to the Kingdom."   
  
Next time: Jesus leads the group on a diplomatic mission to the Kingdom, where Jake meets someone who might actually understand him.   
~TheChuckles


	8. All Hail The King

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rick and company travel to the Kingdom, where they hope to forge a new alliance.

  
Rick was uneasy driving the RV. The last time he did, he led his family head first into Negan's trap. Images of Glenn's head splattering against Lucille still haunted him in his sleep. The whole situation felt eerily familiar. Michonne was even in the passenger's seat, just like last time.   
  
He felt better, though, because now he had a secret weapon.   
  
_If only I had Jake the first time_...The possibilities were endless. Still were.   
  
Carol, Morgan, Jesus, and Jake rode in silence in the back. Daryl had stayed behind to keep Alexandria well defended, while Sasha had been charged with watching over Dwight.  
  
"We shouldn't be split like this." Morgan commented. "The Savior's could know that we left. We could come home to a heap of burning rubble."   
  
Rick overheard his friend's concerns. "You don't think I haven't thought of that a hundred times, Morgan?" He kept his eyes on the road, but Morgan could sense the annoyance in his voice.   
  
"Yeah, let's keep it positive until there is reason to not." Jesus said. "Witnessing the Kingdom should be a spectacle in itself."   
  
In the 12 hours that followed Jesus unveiling the existence of the Kingdom to the group, Rick had ensured that Alexandria was as prepped as it could be to withstand an attack by Negan. Well, Rick had ensured that _Jake_ had reinforced the walls, gate, and guided several residents to where they could find potential Savior snipers.   
  
Rick felt selfish for dragging Jake along to the Kingdom. He would probably serve better at home, but there was always a chance that things would go south where they were going. Although no Saviors had been spotted thus far, that didn't mean Negan wouldn't try to make lightening strike twice.   
  
Jake sensed the two riders on horseback before Rick saw them. They each wielded spears fashioned from the Hilltop, along with knives stuck in their belts.   
  
"Jesus," Rick called upon sight of their new companions, "Tell me they're from the Kingdom."   
  
Jesus strode to the front of the RV, where he confirmed that the newcomers were friendly. Rick pulled over. The group piled out with weapons drawn, all except Jesus and Jake, whom both smirked. _Rick definitely wasn't the kind of man to take chances anymore_ , they both noted.   
  
"Greetings!" One of the horse riders called out. Although both were clad in what appeared to be silver spray painted riot gear, the one who spoke was on the heavier side. A chinstrap beard the color of coal adjourned his neck, fading into his matted hair. His beady eyes squinted in the sunlight.   
  
Rick cocked his head in annoyance at the man, but Jesus knew what to say. "Hello, friends. We wish to talk with King Ezekiel."   
  
"King?" Carol scoffed.   
  
"He will remember me as Jesus." Jesus added. The fat man's eyes widened in recognition.   
  
"Ah, yes! Follow us, we will lead you back to the King."   
  
"Thanks." Rick said to himself as the horse riders turned and galloped back to where they had originated from. "What an act they have going here."   
  
"Play by their rules, Rick. Ezekiel almost has the amount of manpower that Alexandria holds under his control. We need him to stand a chance."   
  
"This place seems like a freak show, and we haven't even been there yet." Carol stated. She fingered the trigger on her rifle.   
  
"We don't have any other choice." Rick stated. With that, the group loaded up the RV and fell in behind the two men on horseback. Jake couldn't sense anybody else in the immediate area, but felt the collection of buildings as they entered a town. He looked out the window to see a school off to the right hand side, other houses dotting the area on both sides of the road.  
  
A metal wall separated the school and a couple of the houses off from the outside, but they were let in through the front gate. They emerged from the RV in the school's courtyard, which also happened to be lined with men in armor similar to the horseriders. As a precaution, Jake held the spears of the soldiers in place. He also lodged their knives deep into their sheathes.   
  
"Where's this king?" Carol asked.   
  
Suddenly, all of the soldiers kneeled.   
  
"All hail, King Ezekiel!"   
  
"Bow." Jesus whispered. The six of them knelt onto one knee as Ezekiel made his grand entrance from the front doors of the school. Clad in a dull gray cloak that was several shades darker than his grey dreadlocks and beard, he most certainly looked the part of a king. His eyes were darker than the color of his skin. Inquisitive, knowing. Poised. He even held a golden scepter in his left hand. In his right, a chain, which lead to...  
  
A tiger.   
  
Jake sensed the beast before he saw it with his own eyes. It let out a massive, hungry growl at its master's side. Even Rick took in a nervous breath as he glanced at it.   
  
"Quiet, Shiva." Ezekiel ordered with his deep voice. "Jesus, how fares the Hilltop?"   
  
Jesus stood, at which point the rest of the group stood. "Troubled times, i'm afraid. And your Kingdom?"   
  
"We have seen better days. I see you have brought friends."   
  
"This is Rick." Jesus patted Rick's shoulder. "He's from another community called Alexandria. We wish to hold talks concerning a new trade bargain, if you would be so kind."   
  
Carol balked at that, but soon realized that Jesus was covering up their real motive to a group of people that he didn't trust. She admired his cunning.   
  
"Of course! Come, come, i'm sure your travels have been taxing. You're just in time for our feast!"   
  
Several hours later, after gorging themselves in the school cafeteria with the rest of the Kingdom, Rick, Jesus, Michonne, and Ezekiel met in the principal's office. Carol, Morgan, and Jake were tasked with learning as much as possible about their new friends.   
  
"So," Ezekiel said, dropping all pretence of his kingly manner, "What have you truly come to discuss?"   
  
"We're planning a move against Negan." Jesus said.   
  
The smile faded from Ezekiel's face at that. "You know I cannot risk the lives of these people to fight the Saviors. We don't have the numbers, or the morale."   
  
"Things have changed. With Alexandria in the fold, we have enough people to finally make an actual stand."   
  
"I can't buy it."   
  
"Yes, you can." Rick said suddenly. "Negan came to our gates last week. Walked right in and grabbed whatever he wanted, was about to leave with it when we stood up against it. Trapped his men inside the walls and pinned them down. If it hadn't been for the snipers he planted on our walls beforehand, we would've been able to capture him."   
  
"You're just poking the bear."   
  
"For now," Michonne interjected. "But we can finally kill the bear if you commit to help us."   
  
"Or the bear can snap us in half and scatter the ashes. It is simply too risky." Ezekiel leaned back in his chair. Rick considered for a brief second whether or not to tell him about Jake, but his conscious told him it was a horrible idea. Nobody else in his own group even knew yet.   
  
"If you don't help us now, then we will go on without you." Jesus warned with deadly calm. "We will mass our troops and fight Negan and lose and many of us will die. And it will be your fault."   
  
"You can't pin that on me." Ezekiel snarled.   
  
"Then do something!"   
  
"I need more to go off of than that, and the three of you know it. I will allow you to stay the night out of hospitality and respect, but unless you have some concrete proof that you stand a chance, I will have to refuse--"   
  
"We have Dwight." Rick stated.   
  
"You what?"   
  
"We have Dwight. That's his second in command, right?"   
  
Ezekiel scratched his beard. "How in the world did you manage to capture Dwight?"   
  
Rick recounted the events from the previous day. When he was done, Ezekiel had a strange gleam in his eyes.   
  
"We will have to discuss this further. In the morning, if that is alright with you."   
  
Meanwhile, Jake was lying on one of the teacher's desks reading an old textbook. He held the thick book above him with his telekinesis, marveling at how much bloodshed the world had endured in the past. _Who knew the Bubonic plague could be so interesting?_   
  
That last time Jake was inside a classroom, it was on the day where the world officially fell apart. He could still remember the clawing of dead students on the classroom door as he held it shut. How he watched from the small window as people he had known for years were torn apart. How he watched it until it ate away at him and he unleashed a devastating wave of power that killed all of the walkers in the area...  
  
Jake heard the door open before he felt it. The sudden distraction caused the textbook to fall on his stomach. A tanned girl stood in the doorway, straight brown hair flowing down to her ribs, watching with wide eyes. Jake tried to freeze her with his telekinesis, but she somehow dodged it and ran into the hallway.   
  
"Shit!" Jake levitated across the room and through the door in pursuit. _You goddamn idiot!_ He caught a glimpse of her turning a corner. Jake was there a second later, reaching for her in his head, when she turned to look at him.   
  
Jake fell to the ground in pain. His head was on fire, as if someone was inside his skull lighting matches. He reached for the girl, now watching him intently, with his telekinesis, but it wouldn't work. Instead, when he reached into that part where his power lived, he heard a soft voice instead.   
  
_What have I done?_   
  
As he pushed more, Jake heard a barrage of voices chatter inside his head. When it became apparent his telekinesis wouldn't work, he stopped trying. The voices stopped as well.   
  
"What did you do to me?" Jake cried, rubbing his temples.   
  
The girl began to levitate as she said "I-I think we just switched powers."   
  
Next Time: Jake tries to figure out his new friend, while things begin to stir back at Alexandria :)   
~TheChuckles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for, you know, not posting for like three months. I can't promise a consistent posting schedule, but I'll do my best to try :) Also sorry if this chapter seems at all out of rhythm, I wrote half of it like two months ago..  
> ~TheChuckles


End file.
